Cruz forced to defend proposal to patrol Muslim neighborhoods

By ELIZA COLLINS

03/23/2016 10:24 AM EDT

Ted Cruz was put on the defensive over his proposal to patrol Muslim neighborhoods as he went on a media blitz Wednesday morning.

Cruz appeared on every major network Wednesday to tout his big win in Utah the night before (he said that Donald Trump had been “clobbered”) and a new endorsement from former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, but journalists wanted to press him about his hard-line response to Tuesday’s terrorist attacks in Brussels, in which at least 31 people were killed and hundreds wounded.

CNN’s Chris Cuomo told Cruz on Wednesday that critics of proposals like his are being careful to not use the words “radical Islamic terrorism” to describe the nature of the attacks. “Their argument is you don’t want to paint too broad a brush and blame an entire faith for the acts of the worst among them, and that’s why there’s criticism about policing Muslim communities as if they were all an enemy,” Cuomo said.

“Listen, nobody is blaming an entire faith, but radical Islamic terrorism, jihadism, is a very discrete — it is a real threat, and this administration’s in denial,” Cruz said, defending his positions. “Enough is enough. Let’s have a commander in chief who keeps us safe.”

He went on to chastise Democrats, who he said are being too weak on terrorism threats.

“It has been interesting in the last 24 hours, when I called for proactive policing directed at radical Islamist terrorism, the reaction from Democrats. Mayor [Bill] de Blasio here in New York held a press conference blasting me, attacking me. It’s an example where Democrats are more concerned about political correctness than they are about keeping us safe, and that’s why people are so fed up,” he continued.

Since announcing on Tuesday his plan to police Muslim neighborhoods, Cruz has repeatedly cited former New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg for his aggressive policing efforts, including the alleged targeting of Muslim neighborhoods for surveillance. Cruz accused de Blasio of ending the program in an attempt to be politically correct, while both de Blasio and New York City Police Commissioner Bill Bratton ripped Cruz for his proposals.

On “CBS This Morning” on Wednesday, Cruz again cited the initiative that de Blasio ended. But interviewer Norah O’Donnell pushed back.

“You know that surveillance program was in effect in New York. It has been disbanded. … You also know it didn’t lead to any leads, any intelligence tips; they said it didn’t work,” she said.

“It is true that the de Blasio political henchmen said that. It’s also true that the NYPD said it provided valuable intelligence,” Cruz shot back.

“This raises a lot of civil liberty concerns. Let me ask you, how many Muslims are in America?” O’Donnell asked.

“I don’t know the number off the top of my head,” Cruz responded.

“So you’re saying that law enforcement should survey the number of Muslims, and you don’t know how many Muslims are in America? There are 3 million Muslims in America. Law enforcement is overwhelmed,” O’Donnell said. “We have a chief of police, one of the most respected chiefs of police, who was here earlier and said there are no Muslim neighborhoods. It’s not like Europe; it doesn’t exist that way. It’s impractical what you’re suggesting. Also, it doesn’t suggest it would lead to anything. It’s more of a political point you’re making.”

In the hours after the explosions that tore through Brussels, Cruz issued a statement that called for halting the flow of refugees in countries with a large terrorist presence. He said, “We need to empower law enforcement to patrol and secure Muslim neighborhoods before they become radicalized.”

“We know what is happening with these isolated Muslim neighborhoods in Europe,” Cruz campaign spokeswoman Alice Stewart elaborated in an email to Politico after she was asked for more details Tuesday. “If we want to prevent it from happening here, it is going to require an empowered, visible law enforcement presence that will both identify problem spots and partner with nonradical Americans who want to protect their homes,” Stewart wrote.

Trump, who has proposed blocking Muslims from entering the country, agreed with Cruz’s plan. “Yes, I would. I think that’s a good idea,” Trump said on CNN on Tuesday night.

But others have panned it. Ohio Gov. John Kasich said at a news conference Tuesday that politicians should not be playing up fear to polarize society. “We don’t want to create divisions where we say, ‘OK, well, your religion, you’re a Muslim, so therefore we’re going to keep an eye on you,’” he said. “How are we supposed to ever get the information we need?”

Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said on Twitter the proposal is “dangerous” and “beneath us,” and Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders told reporters in Arizona it is “unconstitutional.”